A year removed from an emotional whirlwind, Shane Bannon finds himself in a much better place heading into the NFL draft this week: Kansas City.

Bannon sweated out last year's draft at home in Southbury waiting to see if a football team would give direction to his life, even if it was just a hint given that the NFL was in lockout mode. The Chiefs called and told him to head west. Then they made him wait and wait and wait to even try out while a new collective bargaining agreement was hammered out.

This year seems easier. Bannon is already in Kansas City working out in an off-season training program. He knows he is on an NFL roster because for the second season in a row the Chiefs signed him to their practice squad.

While he still has to prove himself as a fullback, it will be a much shorter, defined waiting period, and Bannon already has a much better idea of what is expected of him.

Last year, he wasn't sure if he would get drafted, when he would attend training camp or how much of a chance he would have to make the team as a rookie with a shortened proving time.

"It is a lot more comfortable," Bannon said. "I just got back to Kansas City. It feels good to be back. At this time last year, I was just working out and waiting for the draft. Then we were locked out, and I didn't get to be with the team until July. So it is a much different, better situation for me. I am looking forward to getting to work and trying to make the team."

Bannon was the last cut in training camp last year. The Chiefs did that knowing they planned to sign him to their practice squad and give him a chance to develop while working out with the team all year. That opportunity, though, was cut short when a high ankle sprain midway through the season landed him on the injured reserve list. Still, he learned a lot.

"I know a lot more about playing at this level than I did last year," Bannon said. "I got to see a lot of good players in action, and I learned a lot from a lot of good veterans. It was an unbelievable experience. I probably learned more football in that one season than I had the rest of my life."

Bannon played at Pomperaug High and then at Yale. He not only started his final year of college but reshaped his 6-foot-3 frame into a 245-pound body capable of running over people while remaining athletic enough to catch the ball out of the backfield.

He's hoping that in the last year he's improved enough to survive the training camp cutdown from 90 players to 53. He's already seen first-hand what an enormous task that is.

"Everybody is just a lot better than at any other level of football," Bannon said. "Everyone's fundamentals are that much better. Everyone is more athletic. Everyone is trying to take your job. It is a constant competition. ... It's your job. You are not going to school or doing anything else, so there is a lot more time put just into football. The ones that put in the most time or the best quality time are usually the ones that will make the team."

Bannon is the only fullback on the Chiefs' roster. He expects that to change either through the draft or free agency, but last year's starting fullback, Le'Ron McClain, signed with San Diego during the off-season.

"He was one of those versatile guys that they were able to put out at receiver and stuff like that," Bannon said. "It was fun to watch him. I wish him a ton of well-wishes going into San Diego. He was a great teacher. He answered all my questions all the time and was more than willing to help me understand certain things. He was always cheering on the sidelines whenever I did something good."

Bannon hopes to get some good things accomplished during informal practices and mini-camps throughout May and June. He's also anxious to get the brand new playbook from new head coach Romeo Crennel and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.

"I am not sure what the offensive system is going to be, because we haven't gotten the playbook," Bannon said. "Hopefully, we will get that sometime over the next couple weeks. I feel good. But no matter who is on the roster, I am going to have to be the best fullback there is if I want to make the team. Every day is a gift right now, so I am just trying to take it day by day and appreciate it and do my best."

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Jerry Daniels wrote on Jun 20, 2012 10:23 AM:

" Second (or third) string player, at best. I see a more viable career for Bannon as a Pop Warner coach... or a towel boy at the YMCA, or maybe even a salesman at his father's car dealership; just like his brother. "

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